In this guide we will show you how to install Android 13. Currently, Android 13 is available as a beta version. Those who are into custom development would be glad to hear that the Android 13 beta system images have been made available for download by Google.
The beta version is officially available for only a few supported Google Pixel devices at the time. So if you own any one of Google Pixel 4, Pixel 4 XL, Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G, Pixel 5, Pixel 5a, Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro.
As we all know, Android 13 is still in the beta phase and the firmware is still full of bugs and glitches. It has not made been made available for the public and has only been made accessible for a few users of eligible Google Pixel devices with an unlocked bootloader.
In order to install the firmware, you will have to have the bootloader unlocked on your eligible Pixel smartphone and flash system image via your computer.
Note that there are OTA files that you can use to update your Pixel device to the beta build without having to unlock your bootloader, this is an alternate to flashing the system images via your computer.
Keep in mind that the preview build or the beta build of Android 13 is primarily for developers. It will be difficult for a normal user to navigate around the device so it is advised that you do not flash the build on your primary device.
Install the image on a secondary device, or proceed with taking a backup of your device data. Below in this guide, we have shared 3 methods with you on how to install Android 13 on your device.
Download Android 13 Beta 2 (TPBB.220414.015) For Google Pixel Devices
Before you head over to install Android 13 on your device, you can download the Android 13 Beta 2 firmware for your Google Pixel device from the index provided to you below:
You can also grab the Generic System Image (GSI) from below:
| Architecture | GSI Package |
|---|---|
| x86_64+GMS | Download Link |
| ARM64+GMS | Download Link |
| x86_64 | Download Link |
| ARM64 | Download Link |
1. Sideload Android 13 via Recovery and ADB
The first method to install Android 13 beta on your consists of having to sideload the appropriate OTA package for your device from recovery using ADB. This method is also eligible for Google Pixel devices with a locked bootloader.
- First up, you will have to download the update.zip file on your computer from the links provided above. Downloading this file in the directory where you have placed ADB will be more convenient for you.
- It is recommended that you verify the SHA-256 checksum of the file so that you would know that the file is downloaded correctly and completely.
- After that, you will have to enable USB debugging on your device. For that, you will have to head over to Settings > About Phone > Tap on Build Number 7 times and then you may be required to enter your lock screen password. After that, proceed to Settings again and then go to Developer Options and from there, Enable USB Debugging.
- Now you will have to connect your phone to your computer. A prompt will pop up which will be asking you to authorize the connection between your phone and computer.
- Now enter the command:
adb reboot recovery
- You are required to enter the Android recovery menu now. You can do this by first pressing and holding the power button. While the power button is held, also press the Volume Up button and release both the buttons quickly.
- From the recovery menu, select the Apply Update from ADB option.
- After that, key in the following command:
adb devices
- After entering the command, you should get your device serial number with sideload written next to it. This will indicate that your device is properly connected to your computer in sideload mode.
- After that run the command, replacing “file name” with the file name that you downloaded in step 1.
adb sideload “filename”.zip
- With this, the installation of the update should begin on your phone. After the installation is complete, reboot into Android 13 by selecting Rebooting system now on your device.
2. Flashing Full Factory Image via Fastboot
If the bootloader on your Google Pixel device is unlocked, you will need to flash the factory image of the Android 13 beta using Fastboot in order to install Android 13. Normally, this is done through a flash-all.sh or flash-all.bat script file that is present inside the downloaded file, but the problem is that it’s default configuration also wipes the device data completely.
One way to retain your device data is to delete the wipe attribute from the command within the script. Follow the steps mentioned below to flash the full factory image via fastboot:
- First of all download factory image.zip file from on your computer from above.
- It is recommended that you verify the SHA-256 checksum of the file so that you would know that the file is downloaded correctly and completely.
- After that, you are required to extract the zip file and copy and paste the resultant files in to the folder where you have ADB and Fastboot on your computer. This location will make it more convenient for you.
- After that, you will have to enable USB debugging on your device. For that, you will have to head over to Settings > About Phone > Tap on Build Number 7 times and then you may be required to enter your lock screen password. After that, proceed to Settings again and then go to Developer Options and from there, Enable USB Debugging.
- Now you will have to connect your phone to your computer. A prompt will pop up which will be asking you to authorize the connection between your phone and computer.
- Now on your computer, enter the command to reboot your device into fastboot mode:
adb reboot bootloader
- Then on your Mac/Linux computer, you will have to execute the flash-all.sh script file. This will install the necessary bootloader, baseband firmware and operating system. If you are using a Windows computer, double clicking the flash-all.bat file will carry out the same operation.
flash-all
- After the script is completely executed, your device will be rebooted into the new operating system.
3. Install Android 13 GSI
This method can be used to install Android 13 on non-eligible devices as well. You can install Android 13 on your device by installing Google’s official GSI binaries. But your device should be compatible with Project treble and should have an unlocked bootloader.
You should also know that when you flash a GSI, you are also required to factory reset your device, so you should take a backup of your device data so that you do not lose any data. Follow the steps below to install Android 13 GSI:
- The official Generic System Image based on the stable version of Android 13 is not yet made available by Google. You will have to download the appropriate version of the Android 13 GSI from the links provided earlier in the guide according to your device architecture. You can check your device architecture by entering the following command:
adb shell getprop ro.product.cpu.abi
- It is recommended that you verify the SHA-256 checksum of the file so that you would know that the file is downloaded correctly and completely.
- Once done, you will have to extract the .zip file and copy and paste the system.img and vbmeta.img files in to the folder where you have ADB and Fastboot on your computer. This is for your own convenience.
- After that, you will have to enable USB debugging on your device. For that, you will have to head over to Settings > About Phone > Tap on Build Number 7 times and then you may be required to enter your lock screen password. After that, proceed to Settings again and then go to Developer Options and from there, Enable USB Debugging.
- Now you will have to connect your phone to your computer. A prompt will pop up which will be asking you to authorize the connection between your phone and computer.
- Now on your computer, reboot your device into the fastboot mode by running the command given below:
adb reboot bootloader
- After that, you are required to disable Android Verified Boot (AVB). This should be done considering that the device’s bootloader is already unlocked. Run the following command:
fastboot flash vbmeta vbmeta.img
- You could enter the command below to wipe the system partition. This is not necessary, but is recommended:
fastboot erase system
- Now flash Android 13 GSI using the following command:
fastboot flash system
- Now you will have to wait for a few minutes until the image is being flashed. After completion, key in the command below to wipe the user data partition:
fastboot -w
- Now enter this command to reboot your device into Android 13:
fastboot reboot
So that was it from our side on how to install Android 13. We hope that you found this guide helpful. Let us know what you think in the comment section below.
